The Last Of The Baraandi: Part Five Conclusion free porn video

WITH THE SHIP... Lana and Lydia worked quickly once the construction team arrived. They removed all the proper paneling for quick access to the computer core, and then, with the help of the construction team, got the core and loaded it onto a truck, after which the truck took it off to a secure location. After they were finished Lana and Lydia heard Kendall think, {Are you available to talk? I tried to contact you earlier, but I felt you concentrating really hard and decided it would be better not to interrupt.} Lana thought, {Good plan. We were salvaging the core, and an interruption likely would have resulted in its destruction.} {So you retrieved the core? Any idea about the integrity of the data inside it?} {Not yet. The core isn't compatible with any human technology, so I'm going to have to build a Baraandi computer in order to interface with it, but you didn't contact us to learn about the core. What's up?} {We need your input on a potential candidate for bonding. What would you think about bonding the President's daughter?} {His daughter? I thought the President didn't want his daughter getting bonded.} {He has had some time to think about it, as well as discuss it with both his advisers and his wife. Since we'll be bonding his daughter with the ship's diplomat so that she can act as liaison, we maximize her abilities, but also ensure that she's not a front-line fighter. The question is, do you think she would be a suitable host?} {From what I've seen so far, I think she'd be a pretty good host. Keep in mind, however, that we haven't done anything other than just hang out with her. We haven't done any deep scans or anything like that. Do you want either of us to try something?} {No, that won't be necessary. Since you don't have the training and there's no rush on it, we can wait 'til she gets back to the White House.} {You want us to tell her, or do you want it to be a surprise?} {You can tell her, but make sure that she knows that she's going to need final approval from us. I don't want her getting her hopes up only to have them dashed if we find something that will invalidate her as a host.} {Will do.} After Kendall closed the link, Lydia thought, {That's strange. I was sure the President was dead set against his daughter getting bonded.} {I'm pretty sure he was, too.} {Any ideas on what changed his mind?} {I think I know, but I'm not sure I like the implications of it.} {Care to share?} {Not until I get some more evidence one way or the other. So when do you want to tell Amanda?} Recognizing the subject change, Lydia thought, {Let's wait until we're back in the car. It's more private.} {Sounds good. We can leave after I give them instructions on how to disassemble the ship.} {You think they'll be able to put it to any good use?} {I think so. I'm not exactly sure what yet, but at the very least, they'll have some metallurgical samples to study. We put the processes for making this metal on the disk we gave them, so having the finished product to look at should help.} {What about the computer systems? Is any of it salvageable?} {From what I scanned, no, and I'm not sure why. The computers were designed to last, and I'm not sure what caused this total decay.} {Well, there's a difference between being designed to last and being designed to last for millions of years. After all of this time, surely you must have expected some decay.} {Some decay, sure, but I only expected about eighty percent, tops. There're barely enough computer parts left in that ship to power a pocket calculator.} {Any ideas as to what caused it?} {The breakdown? Not yet. Tina and I are going to have to do some checking on it to determine the exact cause.} Just then, Amanda came bounding over, bubbling with excitement. "This is so cool! I'm actually helping work on an alien spaceship! This is so cool!" Lana said, "Too bad that you're not going to be able tell any of your friends about it." "At least not until this all goes public. I saw all those things in the hangar, remember. There's no way this is gonna stay quiet forever. This is so, so cool!" Lydia said, "You're saying that a lot." "That's because this is so, So, SO cool!!!" Both Lydia and Lana smiled at the young girl's enthusiasm. Lana regretfully said, "Too bad it can't last. After I get finished giving these guys the instructions on disassembling the ship, it'll be time for us to head back to the White House." "Do we have to?" "Unfortunately, yes. Otherwise those shadows that you call Secret Service men that have been following us around are going to wind up being given orders to drag us back, whether we like it or not. And even though we can easily handle them, that doesn't mean that we ought to." "I guess you're right. I guess I'll just have to see what I can do until we do leave." As Amanda ran off Lana asked, "Were we ever that young?" Lydia looked right at her and said, "What are you talking about? You're still that young. When you get excited about stuff, you're just as bad she is." "Like what stuff?" "Like sex play." "Well, that, yeah, sure, but then I've got an excuse." "What excuse can you possibly have?" Lana walked off towards the construction crew, saying over her shoulder, "Why, your hot bod, of course." Lydia smiled and quickly followed. Lana took the time to give detailed instructions to the construction crew upon what steps they had to go through to take the ship apart. It took a little while, but about 45 minutes later, she, Lydia, and Amanda were climbing into the limo to head back to the White House. On their way Amanda asked, "So what's next?" Lydia said, "We're not exactly sure yet. That's really going to be up to Kendall and your dad, but we do have good news for you." "What's that?" Lana said, "Kendall contacted me earlier and informed me that your father has decided that it's gonna be okay for you to be bonded." "He did! That is so great! I won't let you down, I swear! I promise that I'll be a great whatever it is you call yourselves!" "We call ourselves humans, never forget that. No matter what skills and powers you get from bonding with a Baraandi, never forget you're still human, with human failings, feelings, and responsibilities. You're only going to become more than human, not better than human." "Okay, I'll remember. But this is so, so, So, SO cool!!!!" Lana and Lydia smiled. They chatted about a few things on the way back to the White House, but Amanda was barely able to keep her mind on the subjects, and when they did arrive, she all but jumped from the moving car and ran to find her father. Lana and Lydia followed, arm-in-arm, although at a much more sedate pace. They quickly found Amanda and her father, along with Kendall and April. They were surprised to find the President was now telepathically shielded. Amanda was hugging her father and chattering on about how bonding her wouldn't be a mistake, and how she would make him proud. Lana and Lydia walked over to where Kendall and April were waiting, and Lana telepathically asked, {So why did the President choose to let his daughter get bonded?} {I told you, he figures that if she is bonded, then the extra power she has will help to keep her safe.} {Any other reasons?} {Yes, but he's asked me to keep it private, and I've chosen to honor his wishes.} {That why you got the shields up around him?} {That and privacy. It's more than a little disconcerting to have your daughter able to read your mind, even if she does never go any deeper than surface thoughts. I have another question though.} {Okay, what is it?} {Would it be possible for you to build a new starship, one large enough for pilots that are human sized?} {You mean do I have the technical knowledge? Sure. I need a little help from Tina, particularly on the metallurgical details, but given the resources and manpower, it'd be doable.} {Okay. After we get a few more engineers to take over the creation of the power glass from you, I want you to work out some plans, just in case.} Lydia asked, {Just in case of what?} Lana said, {She's intending to build an ark. If we put it on some deserted island in the Pacific and launch it at full speed before the radiation field fades enough for the Larkoss to wake up, then it might be possible, even probable, for the ship to make it out of the solar system without pursuit. We load it down with the best and brightest we've got. That way, if the Larkoss manage to destroy the planet, then something survives.} Kendall said, {Damn, I forgot how quick you were.} Lydia said, {What's the big deal? Why all the secrecy? It seems to me that an ark makes plenty of sense.} Lana said, {It won't just be humans to go on the ship. It'll also be as many of the non front line Baraandi personnel as we can spare.} {I suppose that makes sense. I still don't see the need for all this secrecy, at least not from us. I mean, it's not like any human can eavesdrop on our conversations.} {Kendall isn't trying to keep this from the humans. She's trying to keep it from us, hoping that we won't figure out the full extent of the plans.} Kendall said, {But you already have, haven't you?} {I figured it out back with the ship. Well, it was really more of a good guess, but the more that happens, the more it makes sense.} {I see. Then I guess I'll give you two some privacy so that you can discuss it.} Kendall walked over to the President, and Lydia asked, {Lover, what's the big deal? What's going on with this ark?} {Like I said, as many Baraandi as we can spare will be on that ark. One of the first choices as to who will be going on that ship would be the ship's chief engineer. My knowledge of and ability to build Baraandi technology makes me an absolutely essential element.} {That makes sense. So are you worried that we won't be there to help protect your sister and the planet?} {Not really, after all, you will be there to help anybody who's staying behind.} {What are you talking about? I'll be with you.} Lana shook her head. {No, you won't. You're front line, and you've said it, yourself. You are far more skilled in the areas of physical amplification than anybody, including the security officers. They need you here in order to protect the others. Otherwise someone might get hurt where they would otherwise not, and if that happens, neither one of us would forgive ourselves.} Lydia tried to come up with an argument, even going so far as to open and close her mouth a couple of times as though she were going to say something. Finally, she whispered, "I don't want to lose you. I don't want to leave you." Lana wrapped her arms around Lydia's waist and said, "I don't want to lose you either, so you had better win this fight against the Larkoss, so I can come back here and marry you." Lydia said nothing, instead just kissing Lana on the top of her head. Kendall walked over to where the President and Amanda were talking. Amanda was still chattering on about how her bonding it was such a great idea and how she was going to really be able to help her father. Kendall cleared her throat and said, "Not to be rude, but we need to hurry this along. It would probably be best if Amanda were there when I address Congress and the UN. In order to accomplish that, she should be bonded as soon as possible." Amanda asked, "So soon?" "Things have got to move fast. Currently this planet is protected by the residual radiation from the exploded warp core. When that radiation field finally decays completely, the Larkoss are going to attack en masse. There'll probably be a few more small attacks before that happens, but when the main assault happens, then the planet is going to need to be able to respond as a unified whole or everybody dies." "How long until that happens?" "The main assault from the Larkoss is only a few months away. Hopefully we can get the planet unified before that, at least a unified well enough to mount a suitable defense, but that is in the future. Right now we need to get you bonded." "Okay. Daddy, are you sure you are okay with this?" The President said, "I'm fine with it, hun. Let's get you up to your room. I've already cleared your schedule for the next couple of days. Kendall has told me that the entire bonding process will take about 16 to 20 hours. After that things are going to be hopping." "Alright, then let's get moving." Amanda, Kendall, and the President and his ever-present entourage went to Amanda's room. Amanda and Kendall went inside as everyone else waited outside. Inside they quickly got down to the business of getting Amanda bonded (once Amanda got over the idea of what was necessary). Once Amanda was thoroughly involved in the dream scene, Kendall went outside to where the President waited. As soon as he saw her the President asked, "So it's begun?" "Yes. She'll be bonded in a few hours, then it'll take her half a day or so to sort through the new life that's a part of her." "And the shields you put up around my brain, she won't be able to get through them?" "She shouldn't. They are the best that April and I can do, but it's like I told you before, the Baraandi diplomatic corps is filled with a whole separate class of telepaths. They're as much bigger and better than the rest of us as a seven foot wrestler is to the standard class of humans. It really depends upon how much she is willing to respect your privacy." "Well, she's usually pretty good about that. But you will make sure that she's on that ship?" "We'll make sure she's on that ship, no matter what it takes." "Good. At least Amanda will be safe." "Hopefully it won't be necessary. If all goes according to plan, then we'll be able to recall that ship only a few days after we launch it." "Hopefully. But, no offense, you never sound real convinced when you talk about your plans. Sometimes I think that you've pretty much written the planet off already." Kendall thought about it. "I haven't written it off entirely, but I've seen too much to blind myself to the very real possibility that the Larkoss will destroy this planet. Maybe it's because I've spent so long bonded with the captain, but what the Larkoss did seems ever present in my mind. They destroyed everything the captain knew, everything he held dear. They destroyed a civilization that covered over 85% of a galaxy about the same size as our own." "Do we have any chance at all?" "Honestly, I don't know. The Larkoss went into stasis when they had no available food source and no way to get to one. But life requires some minimal energy expenditure in order to survive. No form of stasis can be 100% perfect without killing the life form it protects, so their energy will be at a much lower level. If we can hit them hard enough, keep them from ever getting enough energy to reproduce, then we may actually have a chance." "What do they need to reproduce?" "Energy. They need to feed on whatever organic material is at hand to get energy. The Larkoss are asexual. Give them enough energy, and one can produce thousands. That's why it's crucial, absolutely crucial, that we cannot let even one feed on any significant portion of the planet." "Do you really think we can do that?" "That'll really be up to you. If we can build enough weapons to counter the Larkoss' assault, then we might stand a chance. To do that, we need Baraandi power glass, and to make that, we need the engineers. In order to really maximize our chances, we need to get the entire crew bonded, but our engineers are crucial." "And for that you need hosts. You know, you haven't made this easy. You have given me a rather exact set of criteria for the hosts you want, some of which are rather hard to fulfill. Do you really want hosts who have never committed a felony, never done drugs, and never had sex outside of a monogamous relationship?" "I believe my list said sex outside of a committed relationship, and yes, I do want all those things. Those particular standards show level of moral fortitude that I require for my crew. These men died fighting the Larkoss, died to preserve this planet. I will not cheapen that by bonding good men with cheap power mongers." "Still, that list seems a bit hard to fill." "Tell you what, I'll accept one violation, just so long as it didn't happen in the last five years. We can chalk that up to youthful indiscretion. But you have to make sure to tell them that nobody is going to get bonded without undergoing a rigorous scan by me. These people are my friends, my family, at least the only one I had as the captain of the Baraandi ship. I'm not taking any chances." "I understand. I'll do my absolute best to get people you can be proud of." "Thank you. But while I'm thinking about it, what finally convinced you to let your daughter be bonded?" "Her mother. When it comes right down to it, she's always been more practical than I have. I was the one who thought of the ark, but she was the one who pointed out that there was no real way we could justify putting Amanda on the ship, at least not as she was. By bonding her I gave her skills that will guarantee that no one will be able to argue her place on that ship." "Some might argue that this is more than a little exploitation of your position." "Well, power does have its privileges. As the President I have to be concerned with the planet, at least my little part of it, but that doesn't mean that I can't be a concerned dad as well. And while I'm thinking about it, are you going to be ready to address both the UN and the Congress?" "I'll be ready to address them. Whether or not they'll believe me? That, I have no idea." "Well, they'll believe that something happened. Every nation on the planet that has a satellite in orbit saw those things come from the depths of space. The question is, will they believe the evidence once it's put right in front of their faces?" "We can only hope." THE DAY OF THE ADDRESS, OUTSIDE THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS ROOM... Lana asked, "Well, April, you're the most powerful telepath out here. How are things going in there?" All of the Baraandi group with the exception of Kendall and Amanda were waiting outside the White House press room where Kendall was delivering her speech which was being simulcast to the joint houses of Congress and to every embassy room at the UN. Amanda was with her father addressing Congress. The President had already briefed everyone on what Kendall was going to talk about, and Kendall was now revealing everything she knew. April used her telepathy to scan the room where Kendall was talking not only to cameras, but also to as many press people as the room would hold. Eventually she said, "Pretty much what we expected, disbelief on a massive scale. I don't think that there's a single person in there that believes what Kendall is saying." Herma said, "Well, let's hope that the demonstration that the President has arranged will convince them." Malus said, "Speaking of which, shouldn't we turn on the TV that they gave us, so we can see what's happening?" Lana reached out and telekinetically flipped the switch on the set that they had been given and said, "Sometimes I think we rely too much on our new abilities." The screen remained blank while Kendall finished her speech, but once she was done the President in the Congress building came on, and he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I have no doubt that most of you do not believe what you have just been told. I assure you, however, that everything that has been said has been the absolute truth. Now, every member of Congress and every ambassador from every nation in the UN has been given copies of the report detailing the creatures that attacked the planet. Many nations have independent confirmation that the creatures did, in fact come from space, but I'm sure that most of you still disbelieve." The scene on the TV changed to an almost empty stretch of desert. Other than endless sand, the only thing present was a tank and one of the dead Larkoss' bodies. "In order to convince you, I have arranged a little demonstration. On your screens is one of the newest lines of tanks that we have built. For its size, it has more armor than anything short of large scale nuclear battleships, and before you start wondering whether or not that's a real tank, we have members of each of the nations on the U.N. Security Council present at the site. They have all inspected the tank, and they can attest as to the truth of what I say. "The other object you see is the dead body of one of the creatures that attacked a few days ago. Please keep your eyes on the screen, and notice that at no point is anything done with either the tank or the body. Further, the witnesses that we have brought to the site will attest that nothing you see has been or will be tampered with in any way." A large metal object almost as big as the tank was carried onto the scene by a large crane. The crane had no driver, and the President explained, "The crane that you see is a remote controlled vehicle, and the device it carries is our newest bomb, the largest conventional warhead ever created by man. Please watch closely." A digital "03" appeared in the lower left hand corner of the screen. It counted down through 02 and 01. When it hit 00 the screen erupted in an explosion. When the flash ended and the debris stopped flying around the crane was gone, and the tank had been reduced to half its size, the top having been forced into the bottom half. The Larkoss, however, seemed totally unaffected. All of the Baraandi group could feel the disbelief and amazement coming from the room full of reporters, and they can only imagine similar feelings from the Congress and the UN. The amazement continued as a jeep drove out to where the Larkoss was. There were five people in the jeep, and all of them got out and inspected the body. After a little while of this, a voice thick with a Chinese accent said, "This is unbelievable. There are only some scratches and a big burn on this thing. That tank... I inspected that tank. It was the real thing. Now... it's just a big pile of junk. But this thing is almost totally unchanged." The TV scene changed back to a view of the President. He said, "That was the voice of the Chinese ambassador, a man who, by no stretch of the imagination, can be considered any kind of ally or friend to me and my country. The yield of the explosive warhead that we used is nearly one megaton, practically unprecedented in the realm of conventional warheads. The only weapons this human technology has created that will do anything other than annoy a live Larkoss is nuclear weaponry, and the resultant poisoning of the earth's biosphere that would result from using the warheads that we need makes that a thoroughly untenable option. "Ladies and gentlemen, like it or not, we need the Baraandi weaponry in order to have any chance against these beasts. The problem is production. The Baraandi cannons need a specially designed power system that we cannot create with any human technology. We need Baraandi scientists and engineers to be able to make these power systems. "But you heard the speech that the young lady gave just a short while ago. The Baraandi gave their lives up millions of years ago, and now need hosts to give them life once more. To this end we are asking any nation with an interest to submit suitable candidates willing to host the soul of a Baraandi. "Details of what this means, what happens before, during, and after the bonding process, as well as the qualities that must be present in the host have been sent to every embassy in the UN. I urge you to go through this data and submit your choices as soon as possible. "Ladies and gentlemen, we don't have much time. I have been assured that the Larkoss will attack again, and each attack will bring with it more and more Larkoss, until all of the Larkoss present in our solar system that we haven't destroyed will attack together. I have been assured this will happen in no more than three months' time. We need to move quickly. "Thank you." The President stepped off the screen, and the scene changed to the White House press room. The President's Secretary of State came on and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, you've heard the President. No doubt many of you still disbelieve. To help try to convince you, one Larkoss body is already on its way to New York, and the one that you saw is, as we speak, being packed up for shipment to Washington D.C. The bodies will be placed on floating platforms with boats and helicopters being made available to take anyone who is interested to see the bodies. The President urges you to bring explosives, knives, guns, or whatever you would like to bring so that you can convince yourselves as to how dangerous these creatures are. "Thank you. Any questions?" Lana turned off the TV and said, "Well, now, I guess it's all over but the grunt work. Speaking of which, Herma, you and I need to go inspect the power glass and the computer components that they yanked out of our ship to see if we can find out why it was so degraded." Herma said, "I guess you're right, and I was so looking forward to some relaxation time. No rest for the wicked, eh?" "Not exactly how I would put it, but it gets the point across. C'mon." THE NEXT DAY, THE WHITE HOUSE BASEMENT... Kendall walked into the room that Lana and Herma were using to coordinate their activities and asked, "Hey, ladies, figure out what went wrong with the ship's systems?" "Yeah," Herma said, "I'm pretty sure we have. Apparently, you made exactly the right choice when you jettisoned the core and sent us to the life chambers. The very same radiation will win that is protecting the planet from the Larkoss caused the slow decay of our systems. If you had kept the core, thinking to establish a miniature colony with just the resources of the ship, then the Larkoss would have stripped the planet, and we, thanks to the radiation of the colony ship that we flew through, would have lost power within just a couple of decades. We wouldn't have had the power necessary to save ourselves." Kendall breathed a sigh of relief. "You don't know what a relief that is to hear." "Why is that?" "Ever since I made that decision, the decision to send us all into the life chambers, doubts were plaguing me. I made the best decision I could, but part of me always wondered what would've happened if we had tried to stick it out. Without the ship's power, it definitely would've meant our annihilation. But that's really beside the point. Can you keep it from happening to the new stuff?" "We think so, but it really doesn't matter, even if we couldn't." "Why is that?" "Because the radiation only speeds up the process. It's not like some instantaneous destruction. Considering how little of the radiation is left, the only real effect will be that the new power systems and computer components will only be good for a few hundred years. Since this is all going to be over and done within a few months, for good or for bad, it's kind of a moot point." "Good point. What about the main computer core? What kind of shape was it in?" Lana said, "It was almost perfect. The main computer core was designed as a sealed system, and it was never exposed to any of the radiation. The cables leading to the connectors to the computer were almost totally junk, but the main core itself had been literally just sitting there for millions of years, protected from the environment by the mountainside that had been leveled over the top of the ship." "Was there anything on it that we can use?" "You mean in terms of technology and plans and such?" "Exactly." "A little bit. Fact of the matter is, most of it I already knew, but I had forgotten about some of it. It was nice to have all the plans and various miscellanies in one place so that I could just copy it and hand it over to the President." "That's good." "What about you and April? How goes international relations and the quest for hosts?" Kendall growled and said, "Don't remind me. A lot of countries are determined to just ignore the protocols that I set out for hosts. Even if I were willing to relax the moral standards, they send me people who are way too old to be bonded. One guy they sent me was almost 50 years old. I swear, if it wouldn't wind up wasting the life force of one of my crewmen, I'd bond one of these old fogies just to show them what happens." "What exactly does happen? I was always more interested in physical machinery, and never learned the details. I mean, I know it's a bad thing to do, but what exactly happens?" Herma said, "Basically, it shoves every system in the body into overdrive. An adult body which is already set all its patterns winds up collapsing in on itself. The body will undergo a stroke, heart attack, liver failure, kidney failure, and lots of other little stuff all at once." "Yuck." There was a knock on the door, and April stuck her head in. "Lana, we've got a problem." "What's wrong?" April telepathically showed Lana an image of two people waiting upstairs and said, "Mom and dad are here." Lana went sheet white and said, "Mom? Dad? Here?" April came all the way into the room. "They're waiting upstairs. Apparently, when Kendall had her press conference the other day, one of the cameras followed her offstage, and mom caught a glimpse of me. At first she thought it was just somebody who looked like me, but when she checked with the school and found that you and I had both been absent for a few days, she started calling around. Now she and Dad are here, and they want to see both of us." Lana asked, "Has anyone told her about," and waved her hands at her body. "Who knows to tell her? Thanks to your computer tampering, the only people who know that I used to have a brother and not a sister are those who grew up with us and your fellow Baraandi, all of whom accept and treat you like you are and always were a girl." Herma said, "Don't tell me that you haven't told them yet." "How exactly was I supposed to tell them? Call them up on the phone and say, 'Hi, mom, school is going great. Oh, by the way, can you recommend a good brand of bra that I can wear? Oh, didn't I mention that I now have a pair of tits bigger than yours?'" "Well, perhaps breasts would've been a better word than tits." "Very funny." April said, "We could've gone back over Christmas vacation and explained it to them then. We can all easily afford it now." "I still wouldn't have known what to say. I'd just... I don't..." "You don't know how to deal with people, despite your telepathy." "I never have, really. Even as a Baraandi, I always got along better with machines." April walked over and put her arm around Lana's shoulders. "Little sister, it's mom and dad. They'll understand." "Will they? They aren't Baraandi, sis. They won't be able to look into my heart and know how I feel. I've heard too many stories about parents who turned their back on transsexual children." "Is that what you are? A transsexual? A transsexual has to be a sex in opposition to their body's genetic structure. I always got the feeling that for you it was a choice." "I'm not sure exactly what I am. Transsexual comes about the closest to describing it. My mind just more closely affiliates with the female, and the longer I stay like this, the more I realize how true that is. Maybe I always was a transsexual, and the Baraandi bonding just brought it all to the surface, giving me a tool to change myself that others don't have." "A lot to think about; a lot to tell Mom and Dad about, for sure. But you have to tell them about it. Or were you just planning on disappearing out of their life one day?" "No, I was going to tell them. Just when things settle down a little." "That might not be for a very long time, and things... might make it hard for you to really have a sit down chat with them for a lot longer." "It's okay, sis. I know about the ark." "Kendall told you? I thought she was going to keep it a secret." April gave Kendall a dirty look. Kendall responded by saying, "She figured it out all by herself." "You still should have told me." April turned back to Lana. "That only makes sitting down and talking to mom and dad all the more important. Let's face it, kiddo. Space on the ark is going at a premium. Only the best will be going, and unfortunately mom and dad don't qualify, and if worse comes to worst, and the ark doesn't return, then you may never get a chance to talk this out." Just then Lana received a telepathic thought from Lydia saying, {Lana love, are you okay? I'm getting a lot of emotional stress from you.} {I'm going through a lot right now. Mom and dad are here.} {Well, you knew you were going to have to tell them sooner or later. Want me to be there?} {Yeah, I think I'm going to need you. You know, after finding out that I intend to be a girl, finding out that I'm a lesbian will probably be anticlimactic.} Lana looked over to April and asked, "You're going to be there? Aren't you?" "Of course. Mom and dad expect to see me as much as they expect to see you." "No, they don't expect to see me. They expect to see their son." "There's no sense in expecting the worst before you actually talk to them. Even if they do react badly, which I don't think they're going to do, it'll be better to have it out of the way than to spend forever and a day worrying about it." "You're right, of course." Lana stood up. "Well, there is no time like the present." The two of them walked out of the room and headed up to the entry chamber where their parents were waiting. They were met along the way by Lydia, and together they went straight in. As soon as their mom and dad saw April the mother said, "Oh my God, it's so good to see you well, but where's your brother?" "Mom, there's something we have to talk about, but first, let me introduce a couple people. The taller lady here is Lydia, a good friend to both me and Larry. The other lady... Well, there's no real beating around the bush about this one. This young lady IS Larry. He kind of decided to make some changes in his life and become a girl, or at least more of a girl than he was." Both of April's parents stared at her for a bit before her father said, "Is this some kind of joke? Because if it is, I don't get the punch line." "No joke, dad. I assume you've been paying attention to the news; hearing all about aliens and monsters from space?" "Yes, and I assume you're part of it, and that's why we haven't heard from you in a while? I swear, girl, you had us scared before all of this. When your mother saw you in the background after that woman who told everybody all about this was on, I practically had to tie her down to keep her from rushing right off." "I am sorry about that, but we're not just helping out. We are bonded with the souls of aliens. Part of the skills that they have and that they've given us is the ability to control how your body grows and develops, and Larry, well, he decided that he wanted to take a little different path." April's mom walked over to Lana and, after staring for a while, said, "You... do kind of look like my mother. Is it really you in there, Larry?" "It's really me, mom, and I really prefer to go by Lana now." Their mother said, "I need to sit down." All five of them went into another room and spent a couple hours talking. Finally Lana reached over and took her dad's hand and said, "Dad, it's not your fault. I can see it inside you. You're thinking that maybe if you had just spent a little more time with me, maybe played a little ball or something, then maybe this would be different, and I wouldn't want to be a girl." Lana's dad took a deep breath and let it out. "You know that telepathy can get really disconcerting." "I'm sorry, but it did need to be said. This, my body, isn't about anything you did or didn't do. It's about being more comfortable with myself, about representing to the world how I feel inside." "I think I understand, although it's going to take a little getting used to." "But are you willing to get used to it? I'm still your little... well, your little child in here. With all of this, are you still going to want to be my parents?" Lana's dad wrapped his arms around her and said, "Always. No matter what you look like, or what you decide to do with your life, I will always love you and be your father." Lana hugged her father and said, "Thank you." After a suitable wait April asked, "So why did you decide to come see us now? Or did it take you this long to get here?" Her father said, "Nope, we didn't leave immediately. We wanted to, but we figured that if you were a part of all of this, that you'd probably be too busy. But then the President's men came to us and explained that he figured a little family time would probably do everyone a world of good." Lana said, "He was right. I really did need this. Dad, you want to go out and play some ball on the White House lawn with me and Lydia?" "Sounds like fun." They all got up and left the room, returning to the room where April and Lana's parents had been waiting earlier. "Wait a second. What about Lydia's parents?" Lydia said, "Well, my father is deceased, and me and my mother... Well, we don't get along real well." A female voice in the room said, "You should give me a little more credit." Lydia looked over to the voice and said, "Mom?!" Lydia's mother said, "I may not agree with your being a lesbian, but that doesn't mean that I don't love you." Lydia walked over to her and said, "That wasn't what you said last time." Her mother looked down shamefully and said, "I was angry, and I said a lot of stupid things, but considering what's going on right now, I think we need to talk this out. Can we go somewhere private?" "If I can bring along a friend. I think I need the emotional support." Telepathically, Lydia asked Lana, {Do you mind?} Lana replied, {Not at all.} Lydia's mother said, "I don't mind. I'd like to meet your friends." After Lana explained the situation to her family, she, Lydia, and Lydia's mother headed into some private rooms to talk. April asked her parents, "Can you wait here for a minute? There's someone that I really want you to meet." April's mother replied, "Sure. Just don't keep us waiting too long." April ran off to get Kendall, finding her sitting alone in their bedroom. April asked, "Kendall, is something wrong?" Breathing heavily, Kendall replied, "Just so tired. Having to deal with so many idiots... so many people who are willing to help only if there's something in it for them is exhausting." "What's with the shields? Why not let me in to help?" "I didn't want to burden you with these idiots." April walked up behind Kendall and put her arms over Kendall's shoulders and gave Kendall a hug from the rear. "That's not the only reason." Kendall put a single hand on April's arm and said, "You know, don't you?" April nodded. "I know." Kendall took a deep breath and said, "I don't deserve you." April kissed Kendall and said, "I know that, too." April pulled Kendall to her feet, saying, "C'mon. I want to introduce you to my parents. Are your parents coming?" "Eventually. They should be here a little later. Well, my mothers will be here later today. Dad will be coming in, but he's got to catch a flight later this night, so he won't be here till tomorrow morning, early." "I think it'll be really great to meet all your parents, even your father." Together they walked back to where April's parents waited. TWO MONTHS LATER, ON THE WAY TO AN ALEUTIAN ISLAND... Lana, as well as a few others, rode in the back of the hover craft to the Aleutian Island where the ark was stationed for liftoff. Most of the people in the craft were bonded to Baraandi and were currently remaining in contact with various loved ones from around the globe. They all knew they'd be leaving the planet soon, and that not returning was a very real possibility. April was driving, and even though she was focused on what she was doing, she maintained her contact with Kendall, but as she pulled up to the island, she finished up the conversation, then said, "Okay, we're here." The entire group left the craft, immediately sighting the towering spaceship that took up most of one part of the island. The spaceship looked like they had taken two aircraft carriers, stripped them down to their main decks, and then put them together, deck to deck, and put them on their end. That was basically what they had done, but they had also replaced the outer bulkheads with panels of special Baraandi metals. The ship could now take more damage than anything else currently available. Amanda came walking up and said, "Okay, this is the last load. Except for the people here, everybody else is on board and ready for liftoff." April said, "That's great, Amanda, but there's something else I need to tell you." Amanda shook her head. "There's no need. I already know that I'm going." "You know? How did you figure it out?" "Didn't. I saw it in my dad's head, even with those shields. Sometimes I'm kind of amazed at just how powerful I've become." "And you don't have a problem with it?" Amanda looked to the ground. "Let's just say that I understand why it has to be done. I talked it out with him, and I know he needs to know that I'm going to be safe to be able to function at peak efficiency." April could feel the grief coming from Amanda and chose to say nothing, instead just hugging the girl. After a few seconds she called out, "Okay, everyone! Let's kick this in the high gear! I want you all on board in as short a time as possible!" April escorted Amanda over to Lana and whispered, "Okay, as soon as everyone is clear enough, I'll take the hover craft and leave, getting clear of the launch site." Both Amanda and Lana stared at April for a while. Finally Amanda said, "You don't know, do you?" "Know what?" Lana said, "April, the hover craft is coming with us. You're coming with us. You're going to be the pilot." "No, I need to go back to Kendall. She's going to need me." "April, there's no way for you to go back. The hover craft is rigged to malfunction. You wouldn't even be able to get a dozen yards off shore. I thought you knew, particularly when Kendall told me to set up the hover craft." April telepathically called out, {KENDALL!!} She heard Kendall think back, {I'm sorry, my love, but it's got to be this way.} {But you need me, and you know why.} {Yes, but like the president and his daughter, I need to know that you're safe. Further, they need you. In order to ensure that you get past the Larkoss, you need to be moving as fast as possible BEFORE you exit the atmosphere. With that kind of a rough ride the ship is going to have to have the best pilot available, and that's you.} {But-} Kendall thought, {I am sorry, and I hope you'll forgive me. Know that I will always Love you,} before closing the link down. On the island April fought back her tears as both Lana and Amanda hugged her to comfort her. Finally she said, "Okay, let's get moving. I want to be out of here as soon as fucking possible." The last load of passengers that April had just brought was loaded into the ark and strapped into their seats. Most of the passengers there were already loaded in stasis chambers, but this particular load was all in seats and ready to do whatever was necessary should the need arise. After everyone was ready April called out, both with her voice and telepathically, "Okay, take off in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and," then pushed forward on the throttle. Outside the ship, there was a flash from under me the vehicle, and in the same instant, the island disappeared and the ship shot upward at a rate that human science would've said was impossible only a few months before. Inside everyone was pressed backwards by the G-forces that were only partly reduced by the ships gravity generators. The ride was roughest while they traveled within the atmosphere. As soon as they cleared the upper atmosphere April asked, {Shema, what's the status on the Larkoss?} Shema, the ship's highest ranking security officer, accessed the ship's scanners. After checking he said, {There's a large group of them waking up.} {Are they coming after us?} {They have started, but more than a few of them seem to be detecting the life on earth. They're heading to earth now.} {Amanda, warn Kendall that they are coming. Shema, how many of the Larkoss are chasing us?} {We have five... No, wait, make that three chasing us. Two dropped off and are headed towards earth.} {Well, that's something. Everyone, hold onto your hats! I'm going to push the engines to their limits. Shema, tell me if the Larkoss that are following us drop off.} Everyone felt the entire ship rattle as April pushed it to its limits. As they went along, Shema said, {Only two left! Just one left!} The ship continued along for a little while, and Shema said, {We're not going to lose this one. He's matched our speed.} {Okay, but I don't want him calling out for reinforcements. I'm going to engage the warp drive on three... two... one... zero!} April, with back up from the engineering crew, activated the warp drive. The entire ship felt like it was split into two copies of itself and then put back together. Immediately April said, {Deactivating in three... two... one... Engines off!} and deactivated the warp drive, causing the same split and rejoining that had been felt earlier. Once outside of the warp corridor that had been created, the conventional drives took over. They covered miles of space in seconds, but it didn't help. Soon Shema called out, {The Larkoss is out of the corridor!} {Great! One Larkoss we can deal with. I want weapons charged and ready. Tell me when it happens.} {We can bring the main gun up immediately, but that would require turning around to face that thing, and it's too maneuverable for us to do that.} {Maybe, maybe not. I want everybody with telekinetic powers to reach out and grab hold of the ship. On my mark, I'm going to perform a 180 degree turn.} Lana said, {Are you nuts?! That will rip the ship apart!} {Not if we all work together to keep that from happening.} {But why take the risk? We can just wait and bring up the lesser weapons, and then take it out.} {And what if the lesser weapons aren't enough? We know the main gun will do the job, but will the others?} {YES! We know they will! April, I know you want to get back as soon as you can, but don't go making stupid decisions!} April grumbled a bit, but eventually said, {Okay, okay, just get those weapons up as soon as possible!} The entire combat after that took only a few seconds. As soon as Shema and Lana had the weapons up, April made a soft turn to allow the Larkoss to get close. Once it was in range, the guns were turned on it. The first few shots stunned the beast, allowing them to bring all the shots together in a concentrated fire that killed it quickly. As soon as the combat was over, April brought the ship to a halt and yelled, "I want the hyper link brought up. See if you can get Earth!" Amanda, the ship's communication officer as well as diplomat, activated the ship's long-range hyper link communications. With the new Warp drive that they used, the long-range system was the only thing they could use, and it took a ew seconds before the speaker turned on and said in an intermittent voice, "...that you?... Can... hear..." April said, "Hello, Earth. This is the ark. Can you hear me?" The voice came back, "... The attack... Dozens of Larkoss... don't know..." Then all sound from the speakers ceased. April asked, "What happened?" Amanda said, "The link went down." "Well, get it back!" "I can't. According to this telemetry, broadcast was terminated on the other end for reasons unknown." April slumped into her seat. After a few seconds Lana said, "Now what are we going to do? The only reason that link would have been that bad was if the equipment was damaged. Since I know our equipment is undamaged, that means earth's equipment is damaged." April said, "Hopefully it's only temporary. Eventually, hoping for the best, they should be able to get the equipment repaired so that we can establish a communication link." "The long-range communication link requires us to be stationary. Are we just going to sit around and wait and hope for the best?" "The way I see it, we've really got two choices. We can just sit around and hope, or we can go someplace and start looking for a new home world. I want input from anyone who wants to speak." For almost 20 minutes the discussion went on. Many people wanted to wait. Since a link had been established where they were, no matter how weak it had been, it meant that a signal could be sent from Earth, increasing the likelihood that a link could be reestablished. If they moved, the only way to reestablish a link would be to send a pulse back to earth and hope that the receivers had been repaired. Those that wanted to move argued that as long as regular attempts to contact Earth were made from the ship, the link had just as much chance of being reestablished as if the attempts were made from earth. Further, all they were doing was sitting around was just wasting resources, minimal though the expenditure was. Finally Lana thought, {We could go back to Baraand.} So powerful were those words, were those thoughts, that all discussion simply ceased midstream. April asked, {What do you mean?} {We could go back to Baraand. We can go back to the planet that spawned the Baraandi.} {We could, but why would we want to? The Larkoss would've stripped the planet bare.} {Yeah, they might have stripped the planet, but all throughout the system,there were automated production facilities. Some of those facilities had no organic matter in them to attract the Larkoss, not even bacteria. Those automated facilities were left running at the end of the war with the Larkoss, not because they expected anybody to return, but because no one wanted to take time to shut them down.} One of the Baraandi bonded passengers asked, {Would those facilities still be working?} {Not a chance. Even if they had managed to avoid breakdown, they would have run out of raw material eons ago, but without someone to receive what they had built, what had been built would still be sitting there. There might very well be mobile weapons platforms or ships just waiting there. It's possible there might even be a small space station just waiting.} April asked, {How likely is that, honestly?} {There should be something there. The Larkoss would've had absolutely no reason to do anything with those facilities, not even check them out. However, what actually is in those facilities, I have no idea.} Someone asked, {What about the Larkoss? Wouldn't they still be there?} April said, {After all these millions of years? Unlikely. The Larkoss are worse than locusts. I doubt that there's anything left alive in our entire home galaxy. Barring some kind of miracle, or perhaps more accurately, satanic curse, the Larkoss would have died off long ago.} Another voice said, {The ones that were chasing us didn't die.} The only answer to that was silence. Eventually Lana said, {They didn't die, but they were in stasis. Any Larkoss left in our home galaxy would be in a similar state. When the Larkoss rest, they don't just drift. We saw that. They latch on to something. They actually land. Not a single Larkoss that was following us remained free-floating.} April said, {So what's your point?} {We know where everything that the Larkoss could land on in our system is, and our sensors are better than their natural senses. We can use the warp drive to travel to the outermost edges of the Baraandian system and use our sensors to scan for Larkoss presence. If they are there, we never get close enough to wake them up. If they're not there, then we go in and get what we can.} April thought about it for a while and then said, {Technically, as ship's captain, I could make this decision on my own, but this is too big. I think my sister's plan is a good one, but on the flip side, we have a ship full of passengers, most of whom are in stasis. If something goes wrong they'll be dead and never even know why. Further, if the plan is to have any value, we need to act on it quickly. We don't have enough time to wake everybody up, take a vote, and put them all back to sleep. I want everybody participating in this who is awake right now. No abstentions in this vote. If you have enough concerns to not vote yes, then vote no. Make your vote now.} By both feeling and vote, every person on the ship who could vote did so. With almost 70 percent of the vote in favor Lana's plan passed. When the detail work was done April said, {Okay, the votes are in. We're headed... home.} BACK ON EARTH... Kendall collapsed backwards into a chair. The president went to her side and asked, "Are you okay? You look really bad." "Working to keep the entire planet synchronized is taking a lot out of me." "No offense, but it looks like more than exhaustion to me." "I'll be fine. I have to be." "All right, if you say so. How goes the assault?" "Forces are holding strong, and we've got a short break. The radiation that keeps the Larkoss at bay has shifted again. Until some new holes open up, they won't be able to assault the planet." "How long until some new holes do open up?" "Not long, 15, maybe 20 minutes at the outside." "Not even long enough for a nap." "What about the ark? Do we know if they made it?" "We know that they made it at least one galactic diameter above the galaxy. That's where our sensors say the transmission originated from. But before we could stabilize the link and establish two way communications, the Larkoss took out our transmitter. The technicians say it'll be approximately 20 hours before they get it fixed, assuming the Larkoss don't inflict any more damage." "At least we know they are safe. They wouldn't have been able to contact us if they had been in combat." "I'd feel better if we could talk to them. Tell me again why we couldn't have two transmitters." "You know the reason. A hyper link transmitter generates an ultra- intense magnetic field. Two transmitters will actually go so far as to create a magnetic circuit that would play havoc with the earth's own magnetic field, causing widespread ecological disaster. If we could have, we'd have built the transmitter outside of Earth's magnetic field, but the power circuits require a living being to put them into alignment, and we couldn't take the chance that a person out in space would attract the attention of the Larkoss and wake them up prematurely." "But we've sent people into space before." "You've sent people into space, but those people weren't using any psychic abilities. Since psychic abilities are powered by life force, it'd be like throwing fish food into a fishbowl, and it very well could've attracted the Larkoss, and we couldn't take that chance. But why ask me about this? You've heard it all before." The president shrugged. "It keeps us from dwelling too much on the upcoming attacks." "How about we talk about something a little closer to my heart? How are Lydia and Malus doing?" "Lydia was injured in the last attack. She took a blast to her left arm and lost most of the muscle and nerve in her upper arm. The human doctors say she should have it amputated, but both she and the Baraandi doctors disagree." Kendall explained, "Muscle and nerve tissue can be regenerated. It's just a matter of whether or not she has the time and energy to do it before the next attack. But if she has it amputated, then it'll be a stump for the rest of her life. Better to just strap the useless limb down until she has the time to repair it. But what about Malus?" "Malus was piloting a flying gun that went down in the last attack. The Baraandi who are in the area say that he was injured, although not badly, and is making his way back to the main headquarters of the area." Kendall clenched her eyes shut. "Well, it looks like he's going to miss the beginning of this next attack. The Larkoss are on their way!" THE BARAANDI SYSTEM... The ark came out of the warp corridor with the familiar splitting feeling. They were on the outskirts of Baraand and immediately started scanning. Shema was the first to speak, saying, {This is weird. I'm not reading any radiation from the sun.} April asked, {Could the sun have exploded, gone nova?} Lana said, {No way! The Baraandi system's sun was smaller than Earth's. The smaller a star is, the more stable it is. The Baraandi sun had an expected life span of almost a trillion years, and it was only about five and a half billion at last count.} Shema said, {This just gets weirder.} April asked, {What is it?} {I'm getting a reading on a huge mass where the sun ought to be, but it's not emitting any radiation. Even if the sun had collapsed into a white dwarf, it would emit some kind of radiation.} {Can you get me any more detail? Anything at all?} {Wait a second. I'm getting a reading. A couple dozen small objects, and they're moving straight towards us.} One of the people in the ship asked, {Could it be Baraandi? Could something of our old race have survived?} April yelled, {I need more detail! Tell me what those things are!} Shema, waiting for details from the scanners, said, {They're... Oh, no!} {What is it?!} {It's the Larkoss. A couple of dozen small Larkoss, about two-thirds of the size we're used to, but they are the same unmistakable body configuration of the Larkoss.} A worried voice asked, {What are we going to do? We can't go back into warp this soon, and we can't take on that many Larkoss.} April ignored the question, instead asking, {How did they know we were here? We're too far away to be sensed.} April grabbed the manual controls and said, {Well, we're not going down without a fight. Ready the main gun, and power up all weapons.} Everyone remained silent, figuring that this would be their last stand. But Lana was suspicious and took the time to check the scanners. Just as April was about to start the engines to begin an attack run, she yelled, {No, wait! Turn the weapons off! Amanda, you're the most powerful telepath on the ship. See if you can contact those that are flying at us.} Amanda asked, {What for? The Larkoss won't answer back.} Lana yelled, "Just do it!" April asked, {Lana, what's going on? What is it?} Lana said, {Look at the scanners. The Larkoss are beasts, with no thinking ability whatsoever. Those things that are traveling at us? They're traveling in formation.} Amanda came out of the telepathic reverie she was in and said, "Oh, my God!" April asked, {What?} Before Amanda could answer, a foreign telepathic voice that everyone could hear said, {This is Colonel Klanaean of the Larrakan Confederacy. Turn your weapons off and heave to. We mean you no harm, but we will respond to violence with lethal force!} April asked, {What's going on?} Lana, with no small amount of awe in her voice, said, "Haven't you figured it out yet? The Larkoss... have evolved." BACK ON EARTH... Kendall shook with the strain of keeping six different battles telepathically connected. At one point she barely croaked out, "The Larkoss... breaking through... south west Africa... Send reinforcements." The president, using more conventional means, immediately contacted reserve forces and sent them to south west Africa. The two of them had moved to a more conventional command room, filled with computers, radios, and people, but the basic tactics they were using were the same. Kendall kept herself in telepathic contact with agents placed all over the globe and with normal people who were watching scanners that would alert them to attacks by the Larkoss. She would then coordinate the forces of Earth, sending them to where the Larkoss were headed to keep the planet safe. After a little bit one of the people in the room who were watching the world's weather patterns yelled, "Winds have shifted again. Three of holes are closed and the Larkoss are retreating." The first few times that this announcement had been made, there had been some minor cheering, but this time there was none. It had been almost 20 hours since there had been even a temporary cessation of the attacks by the Larkoss, and everybody was beginning to feel the strain. With the amount of attacks down to only three, Kendall's attention came a little bit more into the room. The president immediately noticed and said, "Kendall, let someone else take over. You need to take a break." She replied, "No, I have to do this. It's my job. It's my responsibility." "It's not a responsibility you have to handle alone, and you don't do anyone any good if you wind up dying while doing your job." "No, you don't understand. I have to do this. I have to..." Suddenly alarms started blaring, and one of the technicians in the room yelled, "Long-range sensors are picking up a warp drive intrusion into our system, just past the asteroid belt." The president said, "The ark? What's it doing back here?" "It can't be the ark. It's too big. According to these sensors the warp tunnel is almost the diameter of our moon, which means either something very large, or lots and lots of little things." The president looked to Kendall. "Do you have any idea what's going on?" Kendall said, "No... idea." The technician said, "We're about to find out! Something's coming through!" After a few seconds of deathly silence in the room, the president said, "Well?" "It's a single object, spherical, approximately 85% of the diameter of our moon." "But what is it?!" "No definitive data on it yet, but it appears to be launching a whole bunch of small objects." "How many small objects?" "Computer is doing that count now." After a few seconds, the man said, "The computer counts them at approximately 120 items. No, wait a second. The original sphere is launching another wave, apparently of the same amount. Wait a second, they're launching a third... and a fourth." "That makes about 480 of these things, but what are they? Do we have even a tentative identification?" "It's coming through now. Computer scans say that they are... Oh my God, they're the same body configuration as the Larkoss!" Kendall collapsed in her chair and started crying. "No, no. It's too many. There's no way we can fight all of them. No way." The president wanted to go to her and comfort her, but he couldn't afford to show such sympathy at the current moment. Instead, he just said, "Hold it together, Kendall. You need to hold it together." Kendall felt too dejected to even try, but before either she or the president can do anything more, the technician said, "Mr. President, we may have gotten a reprieve. These new Larkoss are attacking the old ones." The president turned to Kendall and said, "There's still hope, girl. Keep it together; keep coordinating Earth's forces. Let all those Larkoss, new and old, fight it out in space and we'll keep the earth safe." Kendall managed to pull herself together and reconnect with her people around the globe. She kept her forces fighting together for a long while when she heard the technician say, "Sir, we've got a new development." "Well, what is it?" "I don't know how to explain this, but our sensors are showing massive cannon fire out in space, and it appears to be coming from that sphere." "Targeting the Larkoss?" "Yes, sir, but only the old ones, the ones that were attacking us, and it's showing cannon fire on a huge scale." "How huge?" "That thing is pouring out more energy than all of the weapons we built over the last few months." The president turned to Kendall and asked, "Could someone have caught and